Date Published:
April 2008

L’Encyclopédie de l’histoire du Québec / The Quebec History Encyclopedia

Sir Frederick Williams-Taylor.

Manager of the Bank of Montreal, London, England.

An important Factor in the Money Centre of the Great Metropolis.

FREDERICK WILLIAMS-TAYLOR, manager of the Bank of Montreal at the London (England) offices, 47 Threadneedle Street, City, who is a popular and familiar figure amongst the banking magnates of the great metropolis, was born on October 23rd, 1863, at Moncton, New Brunswick, his parents being the late Ezekiel Moore Taylor and Rosalind Beatty, who came from the north of Ireland. His great grandparents on the paternal side were Capt. Moore, R. N., of Buncrana Castle, Buncrana, Ireland, and on the maternal side Col. Joseph Morse (U. E. L. descent), commandant of Fort Cumberland, N.S. He received his early training privately and in 1878, being then at the age of 15, he entered the service of the Bank of Montreal in his native town. At 18 he was teller at St. John, N. B., later going to Halifax where he won many honours at athletics at the same time attending to his duties towards the Bank. Later he was employed as teller for four years in Montreal and was then promoted to the office of accountant. He successively occupied this position at Picton, Ont., 1890, and Peterborough, 1892, was Manager at Deseronto, Ont., 1895, assistant inspector at head office, 1897, and for several years he was active in the management of the Bank of Montreal in Chicago. He came to London, England, as acting manager of the Bank in 1905, and in the following year was appointed manager, which position he is so ably filling at the present time.

The subject of this article was well known in financial affairs in Canada, and he is  now equally active in the money centre of London. He is an interesting type of the successful Canadian and an authority in his particular calling, whilst his acumen and industry are denoted by the various important positions he has occupied. Sir Frederick was familiar with the lumber business of which important industry he mastered the details in Deseronto in 1895, and for the next few years his duties brought him into close touch with the then 90 branches of the Bank and with the leading men of affairs in Canada, Newfoundland, and the United States.

In June, 1888, Sir Frederick was married to Jane Fayrer, daughter of Mr. Joshua Henshaw of Montreal. In athletics he earned great distinction in skating, rowing, tennis, squash, racquets, and stroked the Wanderers four-oared crew at Halifax, N.S., in 1886. He is a Silver Medallist of the Royal Society of Arts, and read before that body an interesting and important paper on “Canada and Canadian Banking”, which was published in full in the Journal of the Society on May 26th, 1911. The paper which showed considerable research and knowledge of the country is worth reading by all Canadians, and has received honourable mention from Lord Strathcona; Sir Felix Schuster, Bart.; Rt. Hon. Sir Chas. Tupper, Bart.; Lord Brassey; Hon. J. L. Griffiths, and others.

The London Committee associated with Sir Frederick at the Bank of Montreal are Lord Strathcona and Mount Royal, and Sir Thos. Skinner, Bart., and. with the reigns of management in such experienced and able hands the bank's status in the greatest city of the Empire will remain above criticism.

Sir Frederick Williams-Taylor was knighted by the King in January, 1913. Clubs: St. James', Piccadilly, London; Bath Club, Dover Street, London; The City of London Club; Ranelagh Club; Surviley Forest Golf Club; Mount Royal Club, Montreal; St. James Club, Montreal, etc.

Source: Canadian History Makers. A Volume Containing Accurate and Concise Sketches of Men who have Done Things in The Dominion of Canada Past and Present Together with Photogravures Made from their Latest Photographs, Montreal, Canadian Publication Society, 1913, 159p., p. 63.